Casa Macaluso (Pompano Beach)
***** Casa Macaluso, 1825 Sample Road, Pompano Beach, Florida 33064 (954) 788-0255.
First things first…it was Judith Stocks’ March 12, 2010- 3 1/2 stars Sun Sentinel review that turned me onto this “white table cloth-semi upscale-52 seat” Italian joint.
Casa Macaluso is owned by two brothers…Carlo “the chef” and Antonio “the host-manager-frontman”…they make an absolutely great team—just so you know, the veal chop parmigiana and osso buco that I “sampled” were probably the best that I’ve had since moving down here to South Florida in 1991…trust me, I’ve had tons of chops-buco, so Antonio and Carlo performed a major feat.
Casa Macaluso is a very small restaurant—it’s got 52 seats. Last Saturday night my 8pm reservation (for 4) was honored and I will tell you, that by 8:30pm every seat was taken. I will also tell you, that we were there for over 2 hours and not one single table was “turned.”
When you arrive at Casa Macaluso you are greeted by Antonio at the front door. No kidding, he treats you like a long lost cousin “all night”…and really seems to enjoy visiting every table and explaining the menu in detail. Carlo also comes out of the kitchen to visit every table. Casa Macaluso also has a staff of REAL ITALIAN WAITERS that are as competent and professional as can be. I thought that it was really cool…that each waiter was wearing a “cap” just like the one that Al Pacino-Michael and his body guards wore in the “Godfather” in the scenes leading up to his first wife getting blown up by a car bomb.
Casa Macaluso is an upscale restaurant…it isn’t a “red sauce mom & pop” joint…so there are no pizzas, meatball subs, calzones—but trust me on this…the joint’s menu has plenty of stuff like clams oreganato, cannolis, pastas…so– you’ll be just fine and will have plenty of dishes that you won’t have to ask Antonio to explain. Something interesting…although this joint is clearly steps above a local pizza joint—I think that if you showed up in a tee shirt/shorts ensemble, Antonio would have a seat for you.
Like I said before, Casa Macaluso only has 52 seats. Just so you know, it took me 2-weeks to get a dinner reservation. So, please don’t show up thinking you are going to just waltz in and catch-a-table.
Casa Macaluso is a “great outing”…this isn’t a joint for a fast bite before or after a movie. On the price front…not exactly neighborhood pizza joint prices, but nothing too crazy. That veal chop ran me $33 and came with a gnocchi side.
I really enjoyed Casa Macaluso.
The joint is open for dinner Monday-Saturday for dinner.
Hey Jeff, Got a reservation for this coming Saturday. Let you know how it it.
jeff, you should try capri which is out of chicago it recently opened in boca where matteo’s use to be. food is great.
Of course Judith Stocks hasn’t give a bad review since 2002, so its really quite a crap shoot counting on her reviews (if in fact she is a she). After she gave Don and Vinny’s 3.5 stars its hard to give her any credibility. She gave the French Quarter in Pompano 3 stars, and its probably the worst imitation of creole I’ve ever encountered. I think Judith uses the following scale:
3 stars – totally sucks to not terrible
3.5 stars – pretty good to fantastic
4 stars – cloth tablecloths and real silverware
Hey Jeff, want to update my May 4, 2010 comment.
My wife, I and another couple had dinner at Macaluso’s. You are right, it is small and no one seems to get up so tables don’t turn. The service is very good and Antonio visits every table.
I had the veal parm chop and you are right it is very good. Don’t recall what other main dishes were but I do remember that we all commented that the portions were on the extremely skimpy side. I also recall that those dishes were good but nothing that anyone raved about.
The prices are not cheap.
The menu is not big and regular dishes are not plentiful if that’s what you are looking for.
All in all, it was an okay dinner, but nothing that anyone of the four of us would be running back so fast for.
To Dennis and his Judith Stocks comments. Keep in mind that unlike Jeff Eats, Judith works for the Sun Sentinel who needs advertisements to stay in business. That’s why the reviews can’t be too bad when they should be, because the newspaper needs those restaurants to buys ads.
That’s probably the case generally, Lenny, but its unlikely that Casa Macaluso will be spending much money on Sun Sentinel ads. While you don’t have to trash places if you don’t like them; you also don’t have to give 3.5 stars to places that serve frozen chicken cutlets. Its really counterproductive to make some pizza joint sound like a special occasion italian restaurant. You just tick off your readers when they find out the truth.
Is this spot open yet for the season? It was closed a month ago. Went a few times last year – loved it! Thanks.
didnt like this one. overpriced.